A&E's The Eleven investigates slew of '70s Texas murders

What’s The Eleven all about? Well, the origins of The Eleven is not a happy story, that’s for sure. In no way is it a delightful “this one goes to 11,” Spinal Tap-esque affair.

In Galveston, Texas, down there on the Gulf Coast, eleven teenage girls were murdered over the course of the 1970s. Now, according to Wikipedia[EB1] , the population of Galveston hovered in the 62,000 range between 1970 and 1980, meaning that roughly one out of 5,636 people were murdered over that period of time. Not pretty.

The murder cases are still open, but the basis of The Eleven ties to the discovery of a confession letter of one Edward Harold Bell, who is in prison for a 70-year bid for yet another murder. Apparently this letter gets super specific-y and gruesome-like in terms of Bell explaining his involvement in all of these murders. But now, many years later, and with Bell up for parole soon, he’s denying the confession.

So we’ve got a real life mystery that’s a little too close to True Detective Season 1 for my liking in terms of this is some real stuff going on. In essence, it could be the grist for some riveting reality series / docuseries storytelling, and retired police detective Fred Paige and Journalist Lise Olsen are on the case to reexamine the murders and try to make sense of it all.

The Eleven sneak peek Thanks to the YouTubes!

The Eleven Fun Fact Okay, so not so fun fact for a not so much fun show: the voice over narrator’s voice on The Eleven creeps me the hell out.

The Eleven Fun Fact 2 Eleven, the character from Netflix smash hit Stranger Things who is a cute little girl that also has freaky superpowers and also has some connection with the Upside Down and stuff, takes part in no way, shape, or form in the reality series, The Eleven.

Viewing Info The Eleven series premiere, “Paradise Lost,” airs on October 19th, 2017 at 9/8c on A&E. Additionally, the second episode, “Russian Roulette,” airs right after at 10/9c.

By Eric - TV Geek Army "Revered Leader"

About the author

Eric is the publisher and revered leader of TV Geek Army… at least in his own mind. TV Geek Army is a place for serious TV reviews and news for serious fans of great television. Contact: eric-[at]-tvgeekarmy.com